SERVICES: Rosary on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at St. Anthony de Padua Catholic Church, followed by Mass on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

As the owner of A&Z Steam Cleaning, Benjamin Barloco traveled across Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma, servicing grocery stores' shopping carts for more than three decades.

Prior to becoming a small business owner, Barloco did a stint in the Air Force and worked as a salesman for Swift and Company; the latter helped him forge relationships with numerous grocery chains.

When Barloco decided to purchase a steam cleaning and servicing business from a friend, “he didn't know one end of a screw driver from the other,” said his son, and longtime employee, Benjamin Barloco III.

But that didn't keep Barloco from persevering and eventually gaining a client base that included Albertson's, Piggly Wiggly and Kroger grocers.

Barloco died Wednesday from complications of cancer. He was 80.

Much of Barloco's career was spent on the road, so in effort to save on motel costs he purchased an RV.

“That became our home away from home. It was great,” his son recalled. “It was a godsend to work with my dad. It wasn't work,” Barloco said.

“There were times we had our differences, but that would be anybody who was in close quarters day in and day out for months, but we had a lot of fun and I was fortunate to have that relationship,” he said.

Barloco's favorite part of his job was chatting with his customers.

“He just really enjoyed the people. And they enjoyed talking to him. He made so many friends, because it wasn't just about working and living, it was about knowing what was going on in their lives,” Barloco recalled.

After retiring and selling the business to his son, Barloco became restless and returned to the workforce as a bus driver for Alamo Heights Independent School District.

Throughout his careers, Barloco's vacation days were used for hunting and fishing trips.

“He fished from the mouth of Boca Chica all the way up to Grand Isle, pretty much the whole gulf from one tip to the other,” his son said. “Catching fish was just an extra benefit; really it was all about being out there with his sons.”

In recent years, Barloco gave back to the community by offering on-duty SAPD officers warm meals on Christmas Eve.

“That was one of the things he thoroughly enjoyed about Christmas, because it was about what he could do for others,” his son said.